The nation's highways provide a means whereby millions of trucks-trailer transports and the like are freight carriers and move a majority of cargo and commodities from one point to another.
There is no suitable device installed over or around the wheels of these transports to prevent the generation and dispersement of finely divided water streams or snow mists during a storm, which in turn are thrown sideways into the path and windshields of overtaking vehicles using the passing lane (or being passed). As a result thousands of the highway deaths occur each year and unlimited risks are taken by these passing motorists to themselves as well as others in the immediate vicinity. (Highway safety reports 40,000 deaths occur each year).
The disclosed invention prevents water streams or snow mists from being thrown sideways onto the windshields of smaller vehicles from the tires of larger vehicles. This will save lives and hundreds of million of dollars of damage claims. (The annual automobile insurance claims are estimated at 40 billion dollars).
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the tire spray control device comprises a leading arcuate plate having louvers or blades which may be adjustable, movable or rotatable, defining openings, through which openings, pass air streams which control rain, snow or finally divided water streams which are thrown from the tires due to their high speed rotation and forward motion. This leading plate functions in combination with a trailing arcuate plate.
The trailing plate has louvered or blade-like openings which may be adjustable, movable or rotatable through which passes the spray or rooster tail water streams created by the rotation of the tire(s). This water spray is contained and is discharged through openings or the open bottom of the plate. In a particularly preferred embodiment, the blades are rotatable.
Where multiple wheels or axles are used, one or more intermediate plate(s) may be used which comprises a sheet having planar baffles secured to either side thereof. In an alternative embodiment, this plate may contain blades which are turnable, moveable, rotatable or have louvered-like openings. A first set of planar-like baffles is spaced apart from the leading wheel and the spray contacting the plate is directed by the baffles to the underside of the vehicle carriage. A second set of planar-like baffles is spaced apart from the trailing wheel(s) to direct the flow of water and spray to the underside of the carriage.
In another aspect of the invention an aero-dynamic baffle in a substantially planar configuration is secured either to the plates, or to the vehicle housing, or both to form a wind screen. The baffle is substantially perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the wheel. The wind screen controls the spray which is thrown laterally outward from the wheel by redirecting the spray inwardly and downwardly.
In a preferred embodiment, the baffle contains several outwardly opened vertical strips. The forward moving vehicle causes airstreams of high velocity to pass through the vertical slots. These air streams create a wind-screen containment zone which entrains the spray and prevents it from being thrown outwardly from the wheels into the path of the passing lane and redirects the spray inwardly.
In still another aspect of the invention, the shell is used in combination with the baffle.